Trump To Nominate William Barr As Attorney General

President Donald Trump revealed Friday he plans to nominate former Attorney General William Barr to once again serve as the nation's top law enforcement officer.

Trump announced his intent to nominate Barr as Attorney General in remarks to reporters outside the White House, calling the Republican lawyer "one of the most respected jurists in the country."

Barr, who was Attorney General under former President George H.W. Bush from 1991 to 1993, also previously served as general counsel for Verizon (VZ) and is currently an attorney for Kirkland & Ellis in Washington, D.C.

Claiming Barr was his "first choice from day one," Trump told reporters, "I think he will serve with great distinction."

Trump said Barr is respected by both Republicans and Democrats and expressed optimism the confirmation process will "go very quickly."

If confirmed by the Senate, Barr would permanently replace former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was fired by Trump last month.

Sessions' Chief of Staff Matthew Whitaker currently serves as acting Attorney General, although his appointment has drawn numerous legal challenges.

The decision to nominate Barr as Attorney General comes as Trump continues to lash out at special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

In a series of posts to Twitter earlier on Friday, Trump claimed Mueller has "big time conflicts of interest" and accused the special counsel of forcing people to lie.

"We will be doing a major Counter Report to the Mueller Report," Trump tweeted. "This should never again be allowed to happen to a future President of the United States!"

While Trump repeatedly criticized Sessions for recusing himself from the Russia investigation, Barr's views of the ongoing probe are said to be unclear.

In his comments to reporters, Trump also confirmed reports he intends to nominate State Department Spokeswoman and former Fox News host Heather Nauert as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.